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By Mike Eckel
Following the lead of other regions throughout Russia, Primorye officials announced price controls on a wide range of staples Sept 9. Officials also announced aggressive measures to crack down on unlicensed street-traders and speculators who sharply mark up retail prices on goods. After two days of deliberations among krai officials, mayors and regional heads, Vice Governor Valentin Dubinin signed the decree establishing a detailed index of price limits for food staples. The decree affects manufacturers and enterprises located on krai territory, domestic manufacturers throughout the country selling goods in the krai, and foreign importers. "There isn't order in the country. We don't even know who is the country's head, for God's sake," said Dubinin as several mayors debated the price ceilings for non-Primorye, domestic manufacturers. "Pass these measures now and we'll sort out the details later, with the procurators and lawyers. We're not stealing anything here." Prices on food staples have already jumped at retail outlets since the beginning of the week from 20-200 percent, depending on the product. Anxious customers line up outside bread stores and at the local flour factory. Even as officials discussed dwindling reserves of bread flour in the krai's warehouses, retail prices for bread from the city's largest bakery, Vladkhleb, had risen 30-40 percent. Under the controls, retail price markups for local manufacturers on staples such as butter, cooking oil, flour, and macaroni will be limited to 10 percent of wholesale prices. Markups on meat, eggs, baby food, beans, and tea will be restricted, as well as prices on soap, matches, toothpaste, salt, and diapers. Foreign importers, whose products account for 60 to 90 percent of the krai's total food consumption, are strictly limited to markups of 10 percent on most staple items. Enterprises and manufacturers will be required to declare all price increases to a special committee on pricing established under the administration's consumers' market department. Local municipal heads will be required to create "raiding brigades" from law-enforcement units to crack down on proliferating street traders and unlicensed retailers. Also banned is the listing of local prices in foreign currencies, a widespread practice among retailers throughout the city since the crisis began three weeks ago. Under the decree, violators will be fined, their licenses revoked, and their goods confiscated. While the consensus among the members at the council meeting was to support the price controls, Vladivostok mayor Viktor Cherepkov announced his opposition to the measures. He also questioned the legality of the controls. "Artificial restrictions will not have any great effect.," he said. "For a while, they may lessen the harsh blows on the economics of entrepreneurs or the family budget. But, from the perspective of violating economic laws and market relations, holding back prices will backfire and will be a new blow to the economy."
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